Status: Endangered
Address: 100 North Main Street, Memphis
Built: 1963-65
Architectural Style: Thirty-eight-story Late International skyscraper
Original Function/Purpose: Commerce
History: This building, the tallest in Memphis and occupying half of a city block, was designed by Robert Lee Hall, who also designed Clark Tower. Its tenant base consisted primarily of professionals involved with government and the courts such as attorneys, title companies, etc. For years it featured a rotating restaurant on the top floor and a large “UP Bank” advertising sign atop that, but the sign was removed when Union Planters bank was acquired by Regions Bank. Much of the building was vacant by 2012. IMH Memphis LLC purchased the empty building in 2015 and planned to renovate and convert it to apartments and a hotel, but was never able to finance the project. The lender for that purchase, THM Memphis LLC, reclaimed the building at a foreclosure sale in January 2018. In April 2019, owner Townhouse Management Co. (THM) of New York announced plans to convert the building into a convention hotel, joined by Lowes Hotels. Lowes later announced its own plans to build a hotel on Civic Center Plaza across from City Hall, and Lowes and the City of Memphis pulled away from any association with THM. In late 2020 THM sued the city for not including the building in plans for the new Loews Convention Center Hotel. In early 2021 the City Council approved the purchase of the 38-story building, which comes with parcels occupying the entire block, “so redevelopment of the whole block would not be stymied.” The property has been bought by a body of the Downtown Memphis Commission, namely the Downtown Mobility Authority, which put out a request for proposals in June 2021. In early 2022 the DMA selected for its redevelopment a team that included “experienced Downtown developers, including Kevin Woods and Billy Orgel.” Updated plans were announced late in 2022 for the $261M first phase of the redevelopment project. They call for corporate apartments and meeting rooms on levels 2 and 3, a parking garage on levels 4 to 8, offices on levels 9 to 12, 160 hotel rooms on levels 13 to 22, 205 apartments on levels 23 to 31, condos on levels 32 to 35, and a restaurant and other amenities on level 36. The timeline calls for work on the tower to be completed in 2026. Because it is an historic property, tax credits (possibly amounting to $34M) could help with its rehabilitation.
City Council District: 6
Super District: 8
County Commission District: 8